Favre makes history as Vikings send Green Bay packing
And he saved the best for last: The Green Bay Packers.
Favre’s first game against his former team was all fun for the Minnesota Vikings and frustration for the Packers, as the graying quarterback connected for three touchdown passes and 271 yards in a 30-23 victory on Monday night.
Favre went 24 for 31, without a turnover. He celebrated his first scoring toss with an awkward body bump with kicker Ryan Longwell, also a former Packers teammate, and showed plenty of emotion on this most emotional night. He stayed poised in the pocket all night, too, and avoided the risky throws that have defined his career almost as much as the success.
“I don’t think there was any question what he could do when he came back,” Packers cornerback Charles Woodson said. “But we didn’t do ourselves any justice.”
The Vikings (4-0) sacked Favre’s replacement, Aaron Rodgers, eight times. Jared Allen was credited with 4½ of them, a career high, including a safety in the fourth quarter to stretch the lead to 16. Rodgers had his first two turnovers of the season, and Favre turned both into vintage touchdown passes in the first half.
“I definitely wanted to get this win for Brett,” teammate Adrian Peterson said. “He downplayed it all week, but I just knew it meant a lot to him. I could see it in his eyes.”
Pink wristbands, cleats and sideline caps for breast cancer awareness gave the game a different look, but nothing altered the colour scheme as much as Favre in purple. This was his sixth game with Minnesota, counting preseason, but the sight of the guy who led Green Bay to the Super Bowl and took only one losing record in 16 years there wearing a rival team’s jersey was still strange.
Favre’s history in emotional games has been mixed. In 2003, against Oakland after the death of his father, Favre threw for 399 yards and four touchdowns. But in 1999 he went 14 for 35 with four interceptions in his first game against Mike Holmgren after the head coach took over in Seattle. Favre said he felt on this night a lot like he did in that game after his dad died. He said he was as nervous as he could remember.
“It’s why I play the game. It was fun. It never gets told to me, even though I do,” he said.
Favre trotted right out and took the Vikings down the field, though. He fired a 43-yard pass to Percy Harvin to give the Vikings first-and-goal at the 3, then caught a break when Woodson’s interception in the end zone was wiped out by a pass interference penalty. Replays showed Woodson making minimal, if any, contact with Sidney Rice, but Peterson plunged in for a touchdown on the next play to make it 21-14.
Then came an eight-play, 80-yard drive that stretched the lead to 14. Favre found Bernard Berrian wide open from 31 yards for the score, but the setup was more impressive. Favre had six or seven seconds to throw, and found backup tight end Jeff Dugan for a 25-yarder.
“I didn’t expect him to do that. I thought we’d play better, obviously we didn’t,” Woodson said. “You know, give him a lot of credit.”
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